For this project I was asked to consider how the existing Morrisons' Building site (Garrett St, Wellington) and context could be transformed into a satellite campus and utilised to provide design students with a facility to study, as well as to interact with Te Aro's communities and city life.
I decided to design this space for Le Courdon Bleu cooking school in Wellington, focussing on the ways in which food brings people together and forms connections between communities.
I dedicated the ground floor entirely to cooking and experiencing the sounds and smells that are created in a kitchen environment: I installed a large kitchenette to aid this. The central piece, a "cooking wall", acts as the home for communal ingredients such as herbs, spices, flour, rice, pasta, etc. that students would be free to use and experiment with in the kitchen.
On the first floor there is a glass balustrade around the centrepiece (which has now transformed from an ingredient wall to a light fixture) beneath which the ground has been cut, so that the ground floor and level two are interconnected through an atrium. I also loved the idea of the smells of cooking travelling up to the first floor to create an exotic and flavourful atmosphere. Here, there is also a student bar area and round tables as this floor is dedicated to dining, sharing, etc. Students can gather, eat, chat and drink. The light fixture projects dim dining light onto the room which adds to this atmosphere.
Finally, the second floor I dedicated to the study that may take place for the students alongside their cooking. The atrium around the screen continues. The light fixture now projects LED lighting to provide a study-like atmosphere and there is a large storage unit behind the wall. There are big studio tables for collaborative study and learning. Bathrooms, including accessible ones, are included on each floor.
Cooking Wall texture inspired by material exploration –
Laser cut wood, plastic melted through to form bubbles.
Technical Drawings
Physical Model
I created this physical model of the Morrisons' Building as well as my design within it using a range of processes and techniques. The base model, beams, columns and parts of my design were made using a laser cutter; a skill I have developed throughout the duration of my degree. I installed LED lights behind one of my central walls, and used real herbs and spices to design my 'ingredient wall.'
